


Every Trough I Travel Through

by theleaveswant



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Arguing, F/M, Headaches & Migraines, Love Confessions, Mass Effect 3: Leviathan, Protectiveness, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-12
Updated: 2015-02-12
Packaged: 2018-03-12 01:40:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3339152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theleaveswant/pseuds/theleaveswant
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Back on the Normandy after finding Leviathan, James visits Shepard in her cabin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Every Trough I Travel Through

Shepard lifts her head and winces when the harsh light silhouetting the marine tries stabbing her in both eyes. She flicks a hand towards the desk on the starboard wall. "James, hey. The husk head's over there."

James fidgets. "Thanks, but, uh... Husky's not the sideshow act I came to see." 

Shepard gives him a bare twitch of a smile. "Can you close the door? It's bright out there."

"Of course, yeah." He steps into the room, allowing the door to slide shut, and stops at the top of the stairs. "Headache still bothering you?"

"Just a teense." Shepard lies back down. Nobody else had reported feeling like their head was stuck in a meat grinder after being released from Leviathan's sway; then again nobody else had talked face to ancient unknowable terror with the real thing and lived.

"That sucks. Doc Chakwas give you anything?"

"She did. Still bad. Cybernetics screw with metabolism; I'll prob'ly have to sleep it off." Kaidan had to deal with this kind of pain frequently? Shepard couldn't even imagine.

"Got it." James nods. "Wish I knew how to help."

Shepard waves this off. "You wanted to talk about something?"

"Yeah, but it's not . . . I can wait. Don't want to hassle you when you're not feeling well."

"Only when I am feeling well?" She laughs softly. It hurts. So does pushing up onto the pillows to try almost-sitting, but it's better than holding her own head up. "Go ahead, hassle me. It's not like I'm getting anything else done."

James hesitates, quietly chewing his thumbnail. "I, um. I know it's not my place to question you, Commander. I just—you had me worried today, going down there looking for Leviathan like you did. It was a big risk, trying that alone."

Shepard sighs and lets her eyelids fall. "I know. Fingers crossed it'll pay off for us. Something that powerful . . . Could be one hell of an ally."

". . . And that's great, but it's not what I'm talking about."

Shepard frowns and cracks one eye. "Then spell it out, Lieutenant. My head hurts too much for obliqueness."

"I was worried about you, Lola," James says. "I was afraid you wouldn't come back."

The eyebrow above her squinting eye rises. "You think I'm helpless without somebody to watch my six?"

He scowls indignantly. "Hell no. It's not—I don't know if you've ever seen somebody drown before."

Both eyelids closed again, their insides a canvas for ugly pictures. "I have."

"Then you know. It isn't gentle."

"Being torn apart by brutes is?" Shepard snorts.

"Of course not, don't—I get that it doesn't make sense, okay? I just . . . I grew up by the ocean. I've seen it eat people. And I don't—I don't want anything to eat you."

Shepard's eyes blink open. "That's . . . sweet."

"You're laughing at me." James turns half away from Shepard, showing her his profile.

"I'm not." 

"I figured, after the beat-down you gave me over Mars, you'd understand not wanting to watch somebody take stupid risks." He sounds angry, talking through clenched teeth. Shepard's not sure if the building flutteriness in her stomach is due to the migraine or to James' sudden intensity.

"I'm not laughing, James. Your concern is appreciated."

"Good, 'cause I mean it!"

"Ow," Shepard complains, wincing. "That's loud."

"I'm sorry." James' voice drops to a whisper. "I'm a little young to be having heart attacks."

Shepard smiles wryly and whispers back, "Sure you're not just sore over the lack of mouth-to-mouth?"

"That too," James banters but his heart isn't in it—in fact he sounds downright testy. "You know you're not the only one who's allowed to worry."

Shepard shakes her head. "We were stranded on that platform, James. What was I s'posed to do, count rivets until the Reapers got us?"

"You could've sent me, or EDI." 

His voice is getting loud again, and this time Shepard's compelled to match him. "That wouldn't have worked. Leviathan wanted me."

"Damnit, Shepard, so do I!"

Those words hang in the air for a moment, reverberating like a struck bell.

"Careful, Vega," Shepard says softly once the ringing fades out. "That almost sounded sincere." 

She waits for his comeback. Doesn't have to be clever. Just something, anything to dispel the lurking tension.

"I should let you get some rest." James turns his back and starts to leave.

"James, wait."

He stops. 

"I . . ." Shepard's head hurts too much for all this dramatic confession crap. "I'll do my best not to drown."


End file.
